School children invited to contribute to climate research
In the citizen science project Kallt och svettigt (Cold and Sweaty), 250 school classes are invited to contribute to Uppsala University's research. Image: Phosworks
During one year, starting summer of 2025, school students from all over Sweden are invited to contribute to Uppsala University's climate research through the citizen science project Kallt och svettigt (Cold and Sweaty). For one year, students from fourth to ninth grade will measure temperatures and interview adults around them about how they experience the temperature. A total of 250 school classes will be able to contribute to the project.
Gabriele Messori ser fram emot att ta del av elevernas mätningar och intervjuer. Foto: Mikael Wallerstedt
Kallt och svettigt (Cold and Sweaty) is a citizen science project that aims to investigate how people in Sweden experience outdoor temperatures where they live and how temperatures vary between neighboring areas. For one year, students from fourth to ninth grade across Sweden will be able to help researchers from Uppsala University measure outdoor temperatures and interview people.
Gabriele Messori, Professor at the Department of Earth Sciences, is an extreme weather researcher and Director of the Swedish Centre for Impacts of Climate Extremes (climes). He is, together with Elena Raffetti, involved as a researcher in the project and is looking forward to taking part in the students' measurements and interviews.
- We have limited knowledge about how people in Sweden experience outdoor temperatures in everyday life and how this is affected by the built environment. The students' data collection in Kallt och svettigt will give us unique insights into this, says Gabriele Messori.
Students get the chance to do real research
Kallt och svettigt is the fourth citizen science project organized by the Faculty of Science and Technology. In previous years, school students have contributed to research on energy production, radiation and water quality changes.
Sami Vihriälä, project manager at the Faculty of Science and Technology, is working on the school collaboration and is leading the project.
- Citizen science is an exciting format where non-experts can be invited to conduct real research. Participants get an insight into how research is conducted and we, as a university, get a unique source of knowledge acquisition in a particular area. It's great to be able to offer this opportunity to 250 school classes across the country,” says Sami Vihriälä.
Nina Lund
The Mass Experiment/Citizen Science concept
The Mass Experiment is an example of Citizen Science – a rapidly growing phenomenon in which non-scientists participate in research through collaboration with professional scientists. This is an exciting way to gain understanding of research in general among the public but at the same time raise awareness/knowledge in a particular subject area for a specific target group. In addition, mass experiments can directly support research by capturing large amounts of data in a short period of time.